• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, October 17, 2022

With temperatures dropping, it’s tempting to grab a hoodie that belongs to someone else -- spouse, child or just that “awkwardsituationship” person.

So Hanes is clueing fans into a fake class-action lawsuit in a social media campaign from the Martin Agency.

The ad looks like your run-of-the-mill asbestos alert, right down to the blaring alarm. But those who take the time to call into the gag “hoodie hotline” at 540-5-HOODIE get answers. Or at least a pre-recorded representative offering guidance to recover their purloined hoodie. And if that doesn’t work, they get a 15%-off discount code for a new hoodie.

The campaign kicks off with a social takeover on the brand’s Instagram channel, with more content on Twitter and TikTok.

“The idea was born out of a natural conversation that people were having on social media as soon as the temperatures dropped,” says Maggie Burke, associate director of cultural impact communications, in an email to Marketing Daily. “Beloved Hanes hoodies, broken in and soaked in the perfumes or colognes of the owner, were going missing. Many were searching for a way to protect their hooded treasures, so it was time we developed an authentic and fun answer.”

Hanesbrands has hoodies on its mind these days. Last month, it introduced a “Be Your Own” campaign for its Champion hoodies.

That effort, via Energy BBDO, seeks to remind the world that although it invented the hoodie more than 80 years ago, people still find countless ways to make it a personal style statement.

Those ads are running on TV spots, online and streaming video.

Hanesbrands, based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, has been struggling of late. In its most recent quarterly results, sales dropped 14% to $1.51 billion, in part due to a ransomware attack. At Champion, sales sank 20%.

Companywide activewear sales fell 18% over the prior year, as the company faced tough comparisons from last year, when the pandemic was still fueling intense demand for athleisure. Champion’s activewear, for example, decreased by 25% compared to the prior year but still gained 115% on a two-year stack basis.